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AT A GLANCE

Since 2011, employment growth has stalled at a rate of approximately 1.4% per year, well below the 1.7% annual rate between 2000 and 2007

In 2013, the jobs gap equated to an estimated $1.2 trillion in lost wages around the world

Global labor productivity growth declined from an average annual rate of 1.5% pre-crisis to -1% during the crisis

August 01, 2015

The World is Missing Out on Wages

It’s no secret that the global financial crisis of 2008-2010 had a significant impact on jobs. Employment growth has stalled at a rate of approximately 1.4 percent per year since 2011, well below the 1.7 percent annual rate between 2000 and 2007. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), the slower employer growth since 2011 means that there are 61 million fewer jobs in 2014 than there would have been had the pre-crisis growth trends been maintained.

In 2013, that jobs gap equated to an estimated $1.2 trillion in lost wages around the world. This corresponds to about 1.2 percent of total annual global output and roughly 2 percent of total global consumption.

Estimated Wages Lost Due to Job Gaps, 2013

Source: ILO

Additionally, global labor productivity growth declined from an average annual rate of 1.5 percent pre-crisis to -1 percent during the crisis. Between 2010 and 2014, it has rebounded to 1.4 percent. While wage and salaried employment is growing, it still accounts for only half of global employment. Between 2015 and 2019, an estimated two-thirds of net new employment growth around the world is expected to be wage and salaried employment. Also, part-time employment has been growing, with the rise in the number of part-time jobs outpacing gains in full-time jobs between 2009 and 2013.